UC-NRLF 


B    E    fiEE    MDl 


B   L 

487 

M5 

1820 

MAIN 


THE 

IRACULOUS 

CHILD: 

O  R, 

WONDERFULL 

NEWS 

FROM 

MANCHESTER. 

\  moft  true    and  certain  Account,    how   one   Charles 

Bennet,  a  Child  hut  Three  Years  old   (on  the  22nd. 
^<vf  June,    1679,)    doth   f,  eak    Latine,    Greek,  and 

Hebrew,    though   never  taught  thofe  Languages  ; 

ani  anf>^ers    all   Quefiions    relating   to  the  Bible, 

&c.  in  a  wondertull  manner. 

lAnd  is  now  brought  up  to  be  prtfentcd  to  the  King, 

[aving  all  along  on  his  Journeys  been  vifited  at  Coventry,  and 
f)ther  Places,  by  moft  of  the  Minifters  and  other  Learned  Men  ; 
|o  whom  he  gives  fuch  fatisfadion,  that  they  depart  with  Wonder 
ind  Amazement. 

any  queftion  the  Certainty  of  this  Relation,  let  them  repair  to 
Mr.  Nightingale's,  at  the  Bear  Inn,  in  Weft  Smithfield,  (where 
this  Child  now  Refides)  and  they  may  be  abundantly  fatisfied, 

London,  Printed  for  F.  L,     1679. 
REPRINTED    BY    A,    SWINDELLS,    MANCHESTER.   ?2^n'7/SQO 


"^ 

B>L  n^ 

>" 

Ms- 

l^XO 

^/\iM 

Manchester,  November  17th.  1820. 

Gentle  Reader, 

After  three  years'  diligent  search,  it  was 
with  great  pleasure  (though  at  great  cost)  I  pro- 
cured the  Tract,  of  which  is  annexed  a  Terbatim 
Dopy.  To  remunerate  myself,  and  accommodate 
those  who,  at  a  small  expence,  would  wish  a  Mira- 
culous Child,  were  my  motives  for  reprinting  it. 

I  remain, 

Z     Gentle  Reader, 

* — 

v^Yaur  obedient  Servant, 


f 


«Cl 


I  ^ 


^ 


THE 

Wonderful!  Child : 

O  R 

Strange  News 

FROM 

MANCHESTER. 

'X'HE  Holy  Scripture  witneff^ith,  that  God  doth 
**-  often  reveal  his  ftrength,  and  (hew  the  glorious 
'cfFeftj»  of  his  power,  out  of  the  mouths  of  Babes  and 
fucklings.  What  we  are  here  to  relate,  is  certainly 
as  rare  and  fignal  a  difpenfation  of  his  providence,  as 
moll  that  have  appeared  in  our  Age.  And  this  is 
concerning  a  Child,  the  Difcourfe  and  wonder  of  all 
Lancajhirey  Warwick/hire,  and  parts  adjacent :  For  that 
having  never  been  taught  any  but  his  mother  Tongue  j 
and  being  in  truth  of  an  age  too  young  and  incapable, 
to  all  humane  apprehenfion,  of  being  taught  or  in- 
ftrudled  in  any  thing  of  Learning,  being  but  three 
years  of  Age;  and  when  he  began  firft,  not  fj  much: 
he  does  yet  freely  and  frequently  fpeak  Latine^  Greeks 
and  HebrexB  befides  Englijh^  which  he  was  bred  unto  : 
and  anfy^ers  Queftions  demanded  of  him,  in  any  of 
thofe  Languages. 

The  name  of  this  ftrange  Child  is  Charles  Bennett 
the  fon  of  one  Thomas  Bennett  an  honcft,  poor,  induf^ 
trious  man  in  the  town  of  Manchejter^  and  was  born 
on  the  22.  day  of  June^  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
1676:    fo  that    two  days  before  this  laft  Midjummer^ 

day, 


(  6) 

day,  he  was  compleatly  three  years  of  age,  and  no 
more;  as  not  only  by  its  Parents' Affirmation,  but 
likewife  that  oi  the  Church-book,  and  the  Teftim  ny 
of  many  of  their  Neighbours,  does  moft  certainly  ap- 
pear. 

As  for  the  conftitution  and  features  of  this  Child, 
its  countenance  is  vtry  folid  and  compofed  ;  and  con- 
fidering  its  tender  age  (Ahich  ufually  is  brisk  and  full 
of  plav)  he  feems  fomewhat  inclined  to  Melancholy, 
yet  hath  a  kind  of  Majeftical  Gravity  even  already  ap- 
pearing in  his  looks ,  which  is  frequently  attended 
with  a  modeft  fmije  :  and  when  he  hears  people  fall 
into  exctffive  praifes  of,  or  wondering  extremely  at 
him,  does  commonly  blufh  and  reprove  them  ;  dtfiring 
them  to  praife  that  God,  and  admire  his  power  and 
goodnef^,  who  is  the  fole  beftower  of  every  good  and 
perfed  Gift  and  work,  'Tis  commonly  reported,  that 
his  mother  when  big  with  him,  had  feveral  very  ftrange 
dreams,  which  did  denote  what  2i  /irodigious  or  famous 
Child  (he  (hould  bring  into  the  World.  But  I  w,»uld 
not  relate  any  thing  here,  that  is  uncertain,  or  doubt- 
fully told,  but  what  is  of  approved  Truth. 

He  had  the  ufe  of  his  Tongue,  and  could  prattle 
EngliJJi^  when  he  was*  but  a  year  and  a  quarter  old  : 
but  as  fur  Latine,  or  any  other  Language,  he  was 
never  taught  any  thing  of  that  kind  :  For  his  Father's 
Circumftances  were  far  from  being  fuch  as  to  be  at 
that  charge  and  expence.  When  he  began  firft  of 
all  to  fpeak  other  Tongues,  cannot  be  precifely  fet 
down  ;  for  the  parents  do  fay,  That  they  have  often 
heard  him  fpeak  words  they  could  not  underftand  ; 
but  believed  it  to  be  only  a  Childilh  Gibberifh.  But 
about  a  quarter  of  a  year  ago,  there  was  publick  no- 
tice 


(7  ) 

tice  taken  of  him ;  For  one  of  his  Relations  being 
reading  a  Chapter,  the  Child  obferved  that  they  lead 
wrong  ;  and  withal  told  them  what  was  the  right :  and 
afterwards  was  heard  by  feveral  that  underfiood  it  to 
fpeak  words  of  Latine,  at  which  the  Hearers  were 
not  a  little  furprized,  both  becaufe  of  his  Age  and  of 
his  Education  ;  And  upon  a  fecond  demand  in  La- 
tine,  receiving  a  fenfible  and  plain  anfwer,  they  were 
more  concerned  ;  and  when  on  further  tryal,  he  was 
found  not  only  to  underftand  Latine,  but  likewife 
Greek  and  Hebrew  too,  they  were  wholly  aftoniflied; 
and  acquainting  others  with  this  rarity,  the  report 
thereof  foon  fpread  throughout  all  the  Country;  and 
abundance  of  Minifters,  Phyficians,  and  Gentlemen 
that  are  Scholars,  come  out  of  Curicfity  to  fee  and 
hear  him  ;  which  when  they  have  done,  they  all  con- 
fefs  that  they  never  faw,  heard  of,  or  read  the  like. 

'Tis  faid,  one  of  the  firft  things  when  he  came  to 
difcourfe  in  Latine,  was,  that  he  muft  go  to  the  King, 
for  he  had  fomething  to  fay  to  him  :  what  it  is  he  will 
not,  ^tis  faid,  difcover  to  any  other:  but  deCred  he 
might  be  carried  up  to  London  ;  which  not  being  much 
taken  notice  of  at  firft,  he  often  repeated  the  fame 
both  in  Latine,  Greek  and  Englifli,  to  fcveral  that 
came  to  vifit  him  ;  who  at  laft  agreed,  that  it  was  very 
fit  he  fliould  come  up  ;  and  accordingly  he  is  now  on 
his  Journey  towards  London  ;  but  cannot  travel  but  a 
very  little  way  in  a  day,  becaufe  of  the  multitude  that 
crowd  to  fee  him,  and  perfons  of  Quality  fending  for 
him  to  their  houfes,  out  of  the  Road.  He  was  lately 
at  Coventry,  where  all  the  Magiftrates  came  to  fee 
him,  and  heard  him  talk  in  the  Languages  aforef  lid 
to  fcveral  Minifters ;  whom  he  very  freely  converfes 

with. 


(  8  ) 

with,  and  anfwers  all  quefiions  out  of  the  Bible,  in  a 
wonderful  manner. 

There  are  f  )me  peop)le  that  would  feem  very  wife, 
that  imagine  th's  Child  is  pcffeft,  and  that  fome  evil 
Spirit  aniwers  for  ir,  in  this  variety  of  Languages: 
but  i  can  by  no  means  yield  to  this  their  uncharitable 
opinion;  afwell,  becaufe  poffeffions  are  always  attended 
with  fame  kind  of  pain,  or  diforder  of  the  body,  and 
oft-time  difturting  the  Countenance  ;  of  all  w^hich 
there  is  not  in  this  Cafe  the  leaft  fign :  and  further, 
becaufe  whatever  this  Child  fpeaks,  tends  to  promote 
piety  and  vertue,  and  difcourage  all  kinds  of  wicked- 
nefs.  For  his  chief  difcourfe  is  to  admoniflb  men  to 
repent,  and  amend  their  lives;  now  'lis  not  likely 
that  an  evil  Spirit  fliould  fpeak  fo  much  againft  their 
own  intcreit  :  We  do  therefore  efteem  it  rather  as  an 
extraordin.^ry  gift  from  God  ;  and  hope  it  will  be  a 
n.eans  to  advance  his  Glory,  that  those  wh  )  will  not 
be  reclaimed  from  their  ill  lives  by  the  ordinary  Mi- 
nifters  of  the  Church,  may  at  leaft  be  ftartkd  and 
awakened  trom  their  fins,  to  fc:e  this  young  miraculous 
preacher,  fent  ro  call  ihem  to  repentance. 

We  have  a  Tradition  of  the  famous  Ambrofe  Merlin^ 
that  he  propbefied  from  his  very  Infancy  :  whence  fome 
report  him  not  to  have  been  of  humam  Race,  but  be- 
^ot  by  th-  Phantafm  of  Jfiollo  ;  but  thefe  are  but  old 
wives'  Fables  I  cannot  say  this  Jirodigious  Child  is  a 
FroJihet\  and  yet  i  hear,  that  feveral  things  he  hath 
faid,  have  afterwards  come  to  pafs.  He  came  to  Lon- 
don the  28th  Infiant,  and  is  ludged  at  the  Bear  Inn 
in  Smithfieid,  where  hundreds  have  been  to  see  him. 


il  vii 
FINIS. 


B 


^r^m 


